BL 6 inch Mk XII naval gun
|used_by=British Empire |wars=World War I World War II |prod_date= |type=Naval gun |date= |designer=Vickers |design_date=1913 |manufacturer=Vickers |service=1914 - 1945 |caliber= |part_length= bore (45 cal)Handbook, 1917, Page 7 |carriage= |breech= Welin interrupted screw |rate= |velocity= 2,825 feet per second using 27 lb 2 oz cordite MD size 19 propellant was the figure used in range tables. New guns were quoted with a muzzle velocity of 2,845 feet per second. Handbook, 1917, Page 5 |cartridge= Lyddite, Armour-piercing, Shrapnel100 lb shells : Treatise on Ammunition, 1915 |ammo_wt= |elevation=-7° - 30°30° elevation was possible with P.XIII mountings used on light cruisers; 20° elevation was possible on some P.VII* mountings used on light cruisers; 14° elevation was possible with P.IX mountings used on battleships; 15° was possible with P.VII mountings used on light cruisers. Handbook, 1917, Pages 5, 31, 41, Plates 6, 24, 35 |max_range= http://navalhistory.flixco.info/H/54676x53535/8330/a0.htm |recoil=Hydro-spring, Handbook, 1917, Page 6, 23-26 |weight= barrel & breechHandbook, 1917, Page 5 |length= |crew= |number=463 |filling_weight= }} The 'BL 6 inch Gun Mark XII'Mark XII = Mark 12 : Britain denoted Marks (models) of guns with Roman numerals until after World War II. This was the twelfth model of British BL 6-inch gun. was a British 45 calibres naval gun which was mounted as primary armament on light cruisers and secondary armament on dreadnought battleships commissioned in the period 1914 - 1926, and remained in service on many warships until the end of World War II. Design This was a high-velocity naval gun consisting of inner "A" tube, "A" tube, wound with successive layers of steel wire, with a jacket over the wire.Handbook, 1917, page 5, 6 Naval service mounting on cruiser ''Enterprise'']] , seen in 1936, which formed the prototype for twin 6-inch turrets on ''Leander'' and ''Arethusa''-class cruisers]] , May 1943. The men at left carry cordite cartridges, still in their storage cases, on their shoulders]] It superseded the 45-calibres Mk VII gun and the longer 50-calibres Mk XI gun which had proved unwieldy in light cruisers due to its length, and was Britain's most modern 6-inch naval gun when World War I began. Guns were mounted in the following ships : * ''Birmingham''-class light cruisers laid down 1912, commissioned 1914 * ''Arethusa''-class light cruisers laid down 1912, commissioned 1914 * C-class light cruisers of 1914 * ''M29''-class monitors of 1915 * ''Queen Elizabeth''-class battleships laid down 1912, commissioned 1915 * ''Revenge''-class battleships laid down 1913, commissioned 1916 * Destroyer leader [[HMS Swift (1907)|HMS Swift]] as re-gunned in 1917 * ''Danae''-class (or D-class) light cruisers completed 1918 - 1919 * Monitors [[HMS Raglan|HMS Raglan]] and [[HMS Abercrombie (1915)|HMS Abercrombie]] from 1918 * ''Emerald''-class (or E-class) light cruisers laid down 1918, commissioned 1926 Coast defence gun During WWII some Mk XII guns were used in emergency coast defense batteries.http://www.navweaps.com/Weapons/WNBR_6-45_mk12.htm Notable actions * Ordinary Seaman John Henry Carless was posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross for heroism in serving his gun on [[HMS Caledon (D53)|HMS Caledon]] during the Second Battle of Heligoland Bight on 17 November 1917. Ammunition This gun generated a higher pressure in the chamber on firing compared to preceding 6-inch guns such as Mk VII and Mk XI. This necessitated use of special shells capable of withstanding a pressure of 20 tons per square inch on firing, which had "Q" suffixed to the name. World War I shells were marked "A.Q." denoting special 4 C.R.H. shells for this gun. File:6inchLydditeMkXIIAQNTShellDiagram.jpg| Mk XII A.Q.N.T. Common lyddite shell with night tracer, 1914 See also * List of naval guns Weapons of comparable role, performance and era * 15 cm SK L/45 German equivalent Surviving examples * On monitor [[HMS M33|HMS M33]] at Portsmouth Historic Dockyard, UK * [http://www.flickr.com/photos/41311545@N05/5016980501/ A gun from HMAS Adelaide] at [[HMAS Cerberus (naval base)|HMAS Cerberus]] naval base, Victoria, Australia Notes and references Bibliography * * "Handbook For The 6-inch Breech Loading Mark XII. Gun" G.21117/17. Admiralty, Gunnery Branch, 1917. External links * Tony DiGiulian, British 6"/45 (15.2 cm) BL Mark XII and Mark XX Category:Naval guns of the United Kingdom Category:World War I naval weapons of the United Kingdom Category:World War II naval weapons of the United Kingdom Category:152 mm artillery Category:Vickers Category:Coastal artillery